Non Somnium
by QuirkyKirsty
Summary: Dorothy flew to Oz on the back of a tornado. I'm not sure what storm I was caught up in to get here, and I don't think I can click my heels and wish for home to get back. Somehow this dream is real... and it's up to me to survive it.
1. Over the Rainbow

Title: Non Somnium

Fandom: Fire Emblem: Awakening

Genre: Adventure/Self-Insert

Rating: T

Summary: Dorothy flew to Oz on the back of a tornado. I'm not sure what storm I was caught up in to get here, and I don't think I can click my heels and wish for home to get back. Somehow, this dream is real... and it's up to me to survive it.

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><p>Non Somnium<p>

by QuirkyKirsty

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><p>I. Over the Rainbow<p>

There is no exciting beginning to my story.

I really, really wish I could say there was, because then everything might have made sense somehow… but the way things went down? There was no blazing portal appearing in mid-air to suck me away. No godly being summoned me with pleas for my help in saving their world. I wasn't 'Chosen,' born with a life written out for me by destiny. I'm pretty sure I wasn't dead from a tragic accident and given a second chance at life in a distant world, though I guess that's still up air— at the very least I hadn't been reincarnated as someone else with all my memories still intact.

There is absolutely no reason I could see that explained why this happened the way it did, and for a while all I knew was one thing I could call fact, and it was this:

First, I was asleep.

And then…

I was awake.

* * *

><p>Grass tickled my arms.<p>

Or at least, it felt like grass— tickling my arms, crushed under my back like a cushion. A very soft cushion. Clearly, I was dreaming the grass part; I was obviously still in bed and just waking up from the best night's sleep I'd ever had. The air was pleasantly warm, and I rolled over with a heavy yawn, snuggling back into my pillow in an attempt to doze off for at least a few more minutes.

…or at least I would have, since where I'd normally be sliding my arm under my pillow to fluff it up, I was instead feeling it tunnel through dozens and dozens of scratchy strands of… _something. _

What.

…Where was my pillow?

Once again, I shifted, but this time I cautiously stretched out my legs, an inch at a time, and felt my bare feet brush through soft tufts of… not blankets. I froze; suddenly, I wasn't quite so drowsy anymore as my body abruptly decided to jump start itself and set my heart beating from zero to sixty-miles-an-hour. My brain on the other hand was still stupidly chugging along and half asleep, but even then it wasn't very hard for it to realize that something was very, very, _very wrong. _

Grass. I couldn't actually be feeling grass, or _lying on top of grass, _or having anything to do with grass, but… just then, I felt a breeze. I hadn't left my window open last night, and with the admittedly pleasant breeze came the whisper of a million blades of grass rising and falling with the wind, and that was when I finally opened my eyes to see just what in the world was going on.

I was met with a field of brilliant emerald green. I blinked. Blinked again, but the green was still there, along with yellow and blue and deep brown…

I went from partially paralyzed to bolt upright in a second, rubbing furiously at the corners of my eyes to clear the sleep away, enough so that when I looked again it wasn't a blurry mess of colors and definitely _not _my room I was looking at. An entire green field spread out before me. An massive field of long grasses and small, colorful flowers peeking out from among strands, waving back and forth in the warm wind that picked up, died back down, leaving the air to settle back into a heavy summer haze.

The last time I'd checked the calendar it was almost winter. There shouldn't have _been _grass and flowers this nice, or even trees with all the leaves intact, not like the ones I could see growing up in the distance or like the one I was currently lying underneath, the one shading me from a high sun that was in no way close to being a morning sun.

What the _hell _was going on? Panic started setting in; had I been kidnapped? Straight out of my bed, pajamas and everything? Left in some random field in god-knew-where? Given the horribly different weather conditions, was I even in the same _country_? That was an even scarier thought. As nice as it was, the sunny field took on an ominous appearance. I snuck a look around; there wasn't any sign of another person besides me that I could tell.

Not that I felt like waiting around to find out. Right now, I was going to get the hell out of here. Hopefully I could find civilization somewhere around here, some place with a phone so I could call the police as soon as possible…

With some effort, I hauled myself up. It actually took some effort; every limb on me felt ridiculously heavy and slow to respond. God, I really hoped I hadn't been drugged. That'd probably explain how I ended up in a field without waking up, though…

Well, I could still walk. Like a drunk person, maybe, but walk I did, in a random direction I picked off the top of my head. It was awful; I wobbled with each step and felt progressively sicker the further I went. Even though I was moving on my own and at my own speed, it almost felt like motion sickness… at least there wasn't anything in my stomach to hurl, since couple of times I almost did.

Bit by bit, the motion sickness wore off. The feeling came back to my arms and legs, and more importantly, my head, meaning I was able to think at least a little more clearly. The grass was soft under my feet, and I hadn't tripped over any hidden stones.

Maybe I could pull this off. Hopefully by the time any hypothetical kidnapper came back, I would be long gone and impossible to trace.

This is what I told myself as the scenery went by. It's hard to say without a clock on hand, but by the time I stopped for a breather it must have been around an hour at the least. Not the greatest time, but I couldn't recognize the area anymore from the place I'd woken up in, so that had to be good for something. Alternately, there were still no signs of civilization; no roads, no telephone lines, no anything.

A stream or something would be nice. I had just realized how thirsty I was, and just by noticing, it was automatically worse than it had been before.

…Who knew how far away I was from any actual town?

Yeah, that was a bad thought. I probably shouldn't dwell on it too much. Anyway, I'd remembered to look up at the sun a little ways back, using it to figure out which direction I was going. Let's see, it seemed like the late afternoon, and was roughly to the right of me, so that meant I was going… south? Not that knowing the direction was particularly helpful if I had no idea where I was going, but at least I could avoid going in circles.

My five minute break was probably over by now. Hiking up my pajama pants, I sighed, and started forward again. The funny thing was, if I'd been out here by my own choice on a hike or something, I'd probably love this place, because the surrounding countryside was _gorgeous. _The meadow alone had been stunning, what with long grasses and flowers and cloudless sky. Everything was pristine and completely untouched. And the air, the air itself was, well… delicious. Just by breathing I could feel my energy boosted, and the strain in my muscles fading away. Clearly there wasn't a trace of pollution out here, and I really, _really _wished this was just a normal camping trip.

A pebble wedged itself between my toes. It didn't wedge back out; I wiggled around until it did, where it proceeded to bounce on the ground with all the other pebbles. Oh, the ground had changed a bit, apparently. The long grasses had petered out into scrub, dotted with scraggy bushes. I could see dirt patches, along with the little chunks of rock and bits of stick. Considering my current shoeless state, I'd have to stay back a bit if I didn't want my feet stuck with sharp edges. Thus, with the soft grass still cushioning my steps, I ambled on, staring aimlessly ahead into the distance where the scrub stretched out only to meet with the longer grass sprouting out of the deep tracks carved out of the ground…

…deep tracks… in the ground…

No way.

It was too far to see clearly. Suddenly, protecting my feet wasn't so important anymore. I was booking it over the sticks and stones without a second thought because maybe I was imagining it, or maybe I wasn't and was actually looking at honest-to-god tracks from an actual real-life vehicle of some kind and… _it was it really was. _Running through the ground, with patches of ground where the grass had been worn away, was a neat set of parallel tracks. They were too small and narrow to be from a car, so that meant they were wagon tracks or something, but they were man-made tracks from a man-made object. That meant people. That mean civilization. It meant I might not be totally lost for much longer.

Although… the tracks seemed a bit old. There was greenery growing up in the ruts every few feet, but it was still trampled down at the edges, and to one side was a neatly worn path that had to be from foot traffic. Honestly I was still ridiculously happy to find even the smallest sign of life, and so the age of the tracks didn't matter either way. I'd pick a direction and start walking; if I hit a dead end, then I'd just have to turn around and go the other way, would I?

It was amazing what a little lifting of the spirits I could do. The path didn't run exactly in the direction I'd been walking, and looked close to curving away some ways down. Given that I hadn't exactly been walking perpendicular to it, I might have missed it entirely without even knowing it was there. That I'd seen it was incredibly lucky of me, another confidence booster, and though I hadn't exactly been exhausted before I had a noticeable spring in my step. My stride was longer, I didn't pay as much attention where my feet landed, which happened to be square on a rock in the middle of the dirt… but even a painful rock wouldn't stop me from getting where I wanted to go.

Up ahead the road twisted into a copse of trees, the trunks effectively cutting off my range of vision. Impatient to get a glimpse, I sped up and rounded the corner to where the path threaded in and out of the wood…

And stopped.

The trees still prevent me from 100% range of visibility. But they didn't hide the distant sound of voice, echoing faintly in the wood.

Voices that were laughing.

People. Which meant contact. Which meant— _Oh, thank god_, I could get home!

_Unless they're the guys who kidnapped you,_ my conscious said rather snidely. I squashed it to the side, not willing to deal with that particular thought. I was too happy, and pumped up on a rush of adrenaline. I was bare-footed and in pajamas but I'd be lying if I said I didn't break out into a full run down the path and through the trees, heart pounding, and never more relieved than I'd been in my entire life, and just like that I burst into view of five figures making their way casually in my direction.

"Excuse me!"

It felt like ages since I'd last spoken with anyone, and the words burst out before I could stop them, caught up in my excitement, except, well…

I stopped. My run turned into a jog, then a crawl. I stopped all together.

Five people stood in front of me, in the middle of the beaten path. Three men, two women. All older adults. Staring at me with odd expressions on their faces. Only, that wasn't why I had stopped.

…There are certain moments in life that, whatever the situation, stop you in your tracks from the sheer strangeness of it. I couldn't share any of those situations off the top of my head, but I would remember this one from a long time. It was, somehow, the first clue I really had that told me something was very _wrong _about the world I had woken up.

It was the clothing that did it, of all things. The three foremost strangers were dressed in colors of tan and brown and blue, a mix of leather and cloth and metal. There were shields of some kind fixed to their shoulders, while buckled around their waists were… _swords._

And then there were the last two, a man and woman in long, flowing robes with sleeves that opened at the elbows, and embroidered tabards held in place with thick belts.

It was clothing I would have passed as normal in some kind of renaissance fair... but even that didn't seem to fit what these strangers had going. The way they wore them, how it hung and fitted as easily as though they had worn them for every moment of every day of their lives… I could just _tell, _in that moment, from the way they stood, from the way hands rested in the hilts of very real weapons, that for these people, this was _normal._

I felt a bit like Dorothy, arriving in Oz for the first time. She had known right away, too, that her life had inexplicably and irreversibly changed the moment she set foot out her front door.

_Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore. _

…I must've stood and stared like an idiot for too long, since a robed man decided to make his way to the front of the little group with a kind smile and a slight tilt to his head.

"Greetings, miss," he greeted. He had a weird accent. The others behind him continued to quizzically stare.

…Shit. My eyes stung, and I bit my lip in a completely useless attempt fighting back the tears. Unfortunately they were noticed, as the smile turned into a worried frown. "Miss? Is there something wrong?" asked the robed man somewhat anxiously. The concern was audible, and I nodded without thinking. Now, if only I could actually make myself talk…

"I'm… um, really, really sorry," I finally managed, in a voice tight from nerves. "It's just… I have no idea where I am."

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><p>.<p>

.

A/N: Let's get this adventure started!


	2. Far and Away

II. Far and Away

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><p>Luckily they gave me shoes.<p>

Well, slippers, since it was the only spare footwear available, but something to protect my feet from sticks and stones, anyway. They gave me shoes and my own cloak once it I let slip that I was actually in pajamas, a somewhat scratchy but perfectly serviceable cloak and that was another thing that threw me off. _Cloak. _An actual cape thing with a pin, and not a coat or sweater or… whatever. It was the first act of kindness I'd received since I'd woken up, and despite the overall sense of how wrong everything was feeling I couldn't really be afraid of them, not after that.

I can't imagine what I looked like when the group first saw me; some strange girl in floral pajamas and no shoes, with an ugly blotchy face from suppressed tears, but whatever the sight, I must've looked pretty miserable because Protective Mother Bear Mode was automatically unlocked just like, that I was taken in. The questions didn't come right away; After I'd dried my tears, gratefully taken the offered shoes, and the lot of us had started off down the road— to lose any theoretical kidnappers in the area— I told them everything I knew about my predicament, which really wasn't much. By the end of it, though, one of my new companions looked angry enough to blow up, and just about did when she burst out; "What kind of sick fool dumps a girl in the middle of nowhere like that?"

That companion was Margot, and she was a mercenary. That was how she introduced herself, anyway. I was still trying to wrap my head around that one; I mean, I knew what a mercenary was, what the word meant, but I couldn't really reconcile the definition in my head with the person who was hovering protectively at my shoulder. 'Mercenary' wasn't really a thing where I came from. 'Mercenary' brought to mind scruffy unshaven men with guns who blew up things in movies, not vaguely older women with swords at their side and a look in their eyes like they were ready to stab a dude.

Plus, she wasn't the only mercenary of the group.

"I wouldn't mind running into them, whoever they are," muttered the second mercenary, a large man named Oswin who was currently running a hand along the hilt of his own sword rather darkly, "Show them exactly how I feel about kidnappings around here." He was the largest out of everyone, built a bit like a grizzly bear. He was probably the last person you'd want in your face, and it was immensely comforting knowing he was on my side. The third mercenary said nothing, just looked steadily at the path ahead. He'd been silent the whole time but his name according to Margot was Ren'Li, who'd also thrown in that he was 'the strong, silent type,' and not to take it personally. I couldn't help but notice his pronouncedly Asiatic features compared to everyone else in the group, though he wore the same kind of gear. That being said, his brow was furrowed in thought; maybe he found the situation as distasteful as the others.

Last but not least, there were… probably the two people who were throwing me off even more so than sword-toting mercenaries. Because I couldn't figure out _what _they were, beyond two very nice people and the ones to initially give me a pair of slippers for my feet. Their names respectively were Danae and Torston; the former was the latter's student, though student of _what _remained to be seen. Maybe they were religious? The robes and tabards suggested it, but then there were the _hats. _Each wore a full on felted, pointed hat not unlike what Gandalf the Grey wore. Witchy hats. Or Wizardy hats? Either way, vaguely _weird _hats.

Enough about hats. While the so-called mercenaries muttered under their breath and looked murderous, Danae was looking thoughtful, pinching the brim of her hat in a gesture that looked like habit more than anything.

"Not to make light of a dark situation," she began, "But I'm rather curious as to why you found yourself alone, Miss Kirsten. I would assume your abductor loath to let you out of his or her sight, and yet you made your escape unhindered…"

I felt slightly embarrassed.

"Uh, you don't have to call me 'Miss.' Just Kirsten is fine," I said a bit pointedly. After I'd calmed down somewhat I had finally shared my name: Kirsten Lane. Plain ol' Kirsten was fine with me, but Danae and Torston hadn't quite dropped the suffix yet despite my protests. But back to the whole kidnapping thing; I swallowed thickly and tried to think back to my first awakening. "I don't… I didn't see anything when I woke up. I don't remember being moved, or… attacked. One moment I was in bed and the next I just _wasn't._" I trailed off, not really sure how to describe it otherwise.

"Drugs," grunted Oswin. Margot smacked him on the arm.

"There'd be side effects!" she scolded, "And she's walking right as rain, ain't she? It's weird, this whole thing…" she rubbed her chin, apparently thinking it over, and then snorted. "Almost sounds like magic, in a way."

What.

I almost stumbled. As nonsensical as it sounded, Margot had said that with a straight face. She'd actually said _magic. _

"Uh, I'm pretty sure it wasn't _magic…_" I said a bit weakly, but Oswin promptly drowned me out with his booming voice.

"Wait! There's a tome that does something like that, isn't there?" he said excitedly, "One that moves a man from one place to another, quick as lightning! Is this not true?" Oswin turned to Torston, clearly expecting an answer. The other man sighed, shook his head, and…

"I'm afraid it's a _stave _you think of, not a tome," said Torston, "And while the range of Rescue can certainly be vast with skill, plucking girls from their beds is not the most efficient use, and… Kirsten, my dear, are you alright?"

I flinched. The more Torston spoke the larger the sinking feeling in my stomach was growing and it must have shown on my face. But I couldn't quite understand what they were talking about. Tomes? Staves? Those words weren't really registering in my head. Plus Margot's casual use of the word _magic… _everyone's overall appearance… _swords _for crying out loud…

_These people are crazy,_ whispered the tiny pessimistic side of me, _they've escaped from the funny farm and you gotta get out of here. _Sure, but to _where?_ I didn't have anywhere to go. I had no idea where it was. Sure, I could suck it up until we reached civilization, but… these people had _helped _me. They didn't have to. It said a lot about them even if they were crazy LARPers out the woods, and I didn't want to throw that kindness away. So I put on my best everything-is-okay face and nodded, hoping my tiny smile didn't look as unsure as I felt.

"I'm fine," I said somewhat shakily, "Just a little out of it, I guess."

He looked unconvinced, but eventually Torston nodded and reached out with a sympathetic hand.

"Of course," he said kindly, "I wouldn't imagine otherwise. Whatever may have happened to you, know that you are among friends now, Miss Kirsten. No harm shall come to you." His touch on my shoulder was light, but overwhelmingly reassuring. As for me? I was too shocked by the declaration to protest the 'miss,' part. The sudden kindness caught me off guard. I looked away, hoping my eyes hadn't teared up _that _much.

"Thanks," I said quietly.

The conversation lulled; everyone seemed content to walk, the sound of our footsteps echoing faintly in the woods. After a minute though, a thought occurred to me. "Er… sorry to ask, but… where are you guys headed?" I asked. Realization dawned in Torston's expression.

"Oh. Well. Er, forgive me, it appears we never saw fit to mention," He said a bit awkwardly, "You must think us kidnappers ourselves, how terrible…"

"What he _means _to say," Danae broke in with eyes rolling, "Is that we make for Sage's Hamlet. As of yet, we're a day's travel away. Or close to that, anyhow. Are you familiar with it? Are we anywhere close to your home?"

The look she gave me was hopeful, clearly believing that the name would mean something. Instead, my anxiety returned as I tried to place it and failed, fear bubbling up inside as I shook my head.

"Sorry," I said faintly, "I've never even heard of it."

* * *

><p>The sinking feeling in my stomach never did quite go away, but hours later I was managing to ignore it, mainly because my legs were sore as all heck. I hadn't said anything, not wanting to be the weak link but when Margot called for a break I wasted no time in throwing myself down, relishing a chance to rest. I'd always thought of myself as relatively in shape, but now I was seriously rethinking the definition. At least I wasn't alone; Danae dropped down next to me, puffing and panting.<p>

"Thank the gods. I don't think I've _ever _traveled so far before," she moaned, fanning her red cheeks with one hand.

"Yeah, I think I wore my feet off a few miles back," I mumbled in turn, "The shoes are great, really, but…"

We looked at each other, took in each other's general disheveled appearance, and fell back on the ground, giggling helplessly. It was nice having Danae around, I'd discovered. She was around my age, and happily chattered at me throughout the whole hike. Mostly about little things, like how everyone had been traveling several days by now, and that this was the first large journey she'd ever taken. Oswin and Margot had been hired to escort her and her teacher along the way, and happened to be first cousins. Ren'Li had tagged along halfway through since he was heading in the same direction. And then there was me, the random girl at the side of the road with no idea how she'd gotten there.

Jeez, what a crazy afternoon it'd been. To think I'd gone to bed yesterday thinking about homework and paying rent, while now… I wasn't even sure what I wanted to think about.

"Ladies, please, make yourselves useful." Oswin appeared overhead, blocking out the sky. "We've a camp to set, fires to build… "

Danae shot up at amazing speeds for someone too tired to stand a second ago.

"We'll take care of the fire!" she said eagerly. She was almost vibrating with excitement. I sat myself up again only to have Danae grab my arm, dragging me up and into a line of trees. To gather firewood, as I quickly found out, suddenly having several dry sticks shoved at me as Danae dove into the task with much enthusiasm. We ferried the best sticks and logs we could find back to camp, though it took several trips to build up a pile big enough for Oswin's standards. As we worked, I could see the other adults as well, clearing the ground of stones and other hazards or in Torston's case bent over a pack of supplies he had been carrying.

I didn't mind helping, but honestly? It was confirming the suspicious I'd had about spending a night in these unfamiliar woods. The sun was setting; shadows were stretching as the sky started to darken. We really had been walking most the day… and I was no closer to figuring out how far from home I was.

"Is everything well?" Danae asked, pausing in her gathering. Guess I looked as gloomy as I felt.

"Nothing much. Just… this," I said, gesturing towards the campsite slowly beginning to emerge.

"…Oh." Her expression fell; she'd understood. But she tried to cheer me up all the same. "Have heart," Danae said, nudging me with her armful of firewood, "I'm sure the hamlet will have the answers you seek. My teacher says those who live there are very wise."

"Yeah. Maybe." I wish I had something better to say, but couldn't bring myself to manage. There was an awkward silence, broken by the silent decision to end our impromptu fuel run and return to everyone else.

We'd just deposited our last load when Torston appeared. He looked… suspicious?

"…Danae, Oswin tells me you've… volunteered for our fire," said the older man, frowning heavily. His student fidgeted under his heavy stare, but stood her ground.

"Please?" she asked with the barest pout, "I've hardly touched fire at all these days—"

"Yes, but for a _campfire?" _

"I've a whole half a book left!" Danae protested, looking every bit the defiant student. I watched, bemused. The way she'd mentioned fire sounded strange in this context… not to mention this sounded like a conversation they'd had before. Maybe she was a bit of a pyromaniac? Torston was shaking his head, but threw his hands in the air.

"I suppose once more won't do any harm," he sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, "Just… no conflagrations this time. Please. Let the campfire be exactly that— _campfire sized._"

Danae stuck her tongue out as soon as his back was turned.

"So what's this about a 'conflagration'?" I asked, eyebrows raised, "Get a little excited with the matches or something?"

She brushed the question off like a pro. "It was a minor event. Hardly worth recounting," Danae sniffed, "Some minor property damage is all. I put it out. Eventually."

"…Property damage. Riiiight." This earned me a dirty look, and I snickered.

"In any event, this will save us the trouble of coaxing sparks to life," said Danae, smiling broadly again. "Now, have you built a fire before?"

I hadn't, but I didn't let that stop me. Between the two of us we managed to erect a basic pile of logs. Some effort was made to arrange things correctly, but Danae wasn't overly concerned with properly placing lighter kindling and heavier logs. But we did line the spot with stones and make a shallow indent in the ground for the future fire to rest in, and the end result wasn't too bad; I turned to ask about the matches or whatever we'd use to get the fire going.

Danae was already digging in the satchel she'd been carrying since we met, but she didn't pull out what expected; instead, what she held in her hands was a small, red book.

"…Are you gonna use the pages?" I asked a bit curiously. She didn't seem to have any sort of fire starter and was flipping through the pages, most of which seemed totally blank. Danae tilted her head as if I'd said something weird.

"Well, yes, but… Have you not seen a Tome before?" she asked. I knew what 'tome,' meant, but somehow I don't think we meant the same thing, making me hesitate to answer.

"Er… I don't know?" I said, and flinched a bit as she shot me an incredulous look.

"…Well, I suppose those not of the discipline would be unfamiliar… no matter. As you can see, this is a simple Fire Tome," said Danae, brandishing the book proudly. "With this, our labor will be finished in an instant!"

Right. I wasn't sure how she planned on instant campfire with just a book, unless she was going to burn the pages or something, but it didn't look like she was going to tell me. Danase just raised her hand, fixing her attention at the pages of the book and whatever was written down inside, and I mentally calculated the changes of rubbing two sticks together for sparks…

"_Fire." _

A five-foot pillar of flame burst into existence, engulfing our ring of stones and sending a wave of heat rippling through the air. Danae just stood there, eyes shining at the now-blazing wood, and me?

I choked back a startled cry, took a panicked step back and promptly fell flat on my ass.

"_Ha! _I _told _him I would manage, conflagrations asi— Kirsten?" Seeing me on the ground, Danae's smile faded. "Are—"

"What did you _do?_" I cut her off the question was hoarse, given how my mouth had dried from the sudden heatwave.

"Ah— I cast Fire, of course." She was uncertain, I could tell, looking at my position with confusion. She hadn't expected me to act this way.

"But… how did… how did you _do that? _The fire… those things around you…?" I'd seen golden rings shimmer around her, in some strange language I hadn't understood, right before the fire appeared _from her fingertips. _

_Magic, _whispered the slightly hysterical, very irrational part of me right now. _But magic… isn't… isn't… _

"Danae, what did I _tell _you?"

Torston appeared. His voice was stern, his arms were folded, and he had a knowing look. Distracted from me, Danae's attention was drawn to him and her confusion quickly faded in exchange for indignation.

"No! Look! Nothing else caught on fire this time!" she protested, "It was _exactly _in the air, no more, no less—"

"And still much larger than strictly necessary," Torston said with a hint of dryness, "We'll be covering control again soon, I think. Now, I do believe our friends could use some help in meal preparation. Why don't you offer your assistance?"

Danae grumbled at that, but turned her heel obediently. Her glance towards me was still worried even as she left. Leaving me with Torston. Who was staring at me with an unreadable expression. I couldn't meet his gaze, not with the shock still there, with a fire burning merrily where there hadn't even been a spark before.

"You've never seen a spell performed before." A statement. Not a question. I shook my head, barely.

"No," I whispered. He stared a little longer at that, and I wondered what was going through his head.

Either way, I couldn't think of anything else to offer, so I just sat there, drawing my legs up to my body and watching the fire.

I was quiet for the rest of the evening. Sensing my mood, Danae was quiet too, less talkative than she had been during the day. I felt a bit bad, knowing I had left her wondering. Torston still spoke with the others, but I caught him studying me more than once. As for Oswin and Margot, they were oblivious to the situation, and ended up carrying most of the conversation with loud stories of past jobs and on one occasion embarrassing stories from childhood, though that was more Oswin than Margot. She punched him for it, several times.

Finally, sleeping gear was pulled out— bedrolls according to Margot, who offered me her own to use.

"Don't worry about it," she waved off my protests, "Someone's gotta stay up for watch. I'll switch with Oz, he won't mind." And the matter was settled. Crawling under the covers, I felt like I had at the beginning of all this, not even a day before— confused, anxious, and scared, for whatever tomorrow might bring next.

* * *

><p>I woke up halfway through the night.<p>

It was dark, naturally. Too dark. the fire had reduced to smoldering coals that only accentuated the curtain of darkness beyond, and I just lay there for a few minutes, listening to rustling leaves and distant insects. There was another sound; something soft and rasping, like metal on metal. Someone was up to keep watch, wasn't there? I turned my head; sure enough, someone was up, sitting across at the other end of the fire.

It wasn't Margot or Oswin though, but Ren'li. Who still hadn't spoken more than a few words the whole time I'd been here. There was a gleam in his hands which, with some squinting as my eyes adjusted, turned into a sword, reflecting the light from the coals. He was sharpening a blade, I realized, running a small stone across the edge in steady, continuous motions. It was soothing to watch, but not enough to send me to sleep. Not yet.

…There _was _something digging into my back. As stealthily as possible I tried to wiggle over to a better spot, more or less succeeding but not as unnoticed as I'd hoped.

"You should sleep. You'll need that rest for tomorrow."

I froze, disoriented by the unfamiliar voice, then blinked. Ren'li had spoken. To me. A full sentence. The silence following was expectant, though he hadn't turned to look at me.

"I'm… not really tired right now," I hesitantly said. Well, he knew I was awake now; no use in lying down. I received a better view of the sword in Ren'li's hand by sitting up at least; it was vaguely curved, a wavy pattern running along the length of the blade. It wasn't a sword so much as a katana. Another difference between him and the other two mercenaries, who had plain, straight swords as far as I could tell.

Silence. I watched him sharpen the blade a little more. No doubt it'd be razor sharp by the end. It was funny how he spoke to me, though, the first time in the middle of the night…

"You seem surprised." There it was again. He sounded amused.

"I, uh, haven't heard you speak yet, really," I said. He shrugged with the tiniest roll of the shoulders.

"I prefer to save my words." Uh. Okay. What was this right now then? It felt awkward not to continue the conversation somehow, but he seemed okay where he was. However, I couldn't help but be curious.

"So you haven't been with the others for long, right?" Was that a weird question? He seemed to consider it, tilting his head. He moved then, gracefully spinning around in place so that he was facing me, glowing orange in the firelight.

"Convenience drew us together," he said simply, "Safety in numbers, so they say."

That worried me. Not to mention the need for a watch…

"Is it not safe here?" I asked a bit tentatively. The grinding stone slid to a stop.

"...The times are changing," said Ren'li. He wasn't quite looking at me; instead it was off into the distance, somewhere far away. "Trouble is brewing between lands. Valm is not at ease, these days."

"…Valm?" I asked before I could help it, and he _did _look at me then.

"You don't know of Valm?" he asked curiously, and I shook my head, hoping I hadn't put my foot in it somehow. His mouth twisted first, then he laughed, a quiet, humorless sort of laugh. "First the Tome. Then to not know the name of the very continent you walk on?" he said, and oh geez, he'd seen my reaction to Danae's fire? And… did his just say _continent?_

He shook his head again at my stricken expression. "I think, Miss Kirsten," he said quietly, "That you are very far from home indeed."

I couldn't really find an answer to that.

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><p>.<p>

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EdC back at it! Thanks for the review and follows, I appreciate them very much. I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter.

To Antex, I hope this chapter helped clear it up; Kirsten isn't the Avatar here; she's her own character. She'll meet the avatar eventually though! :)


	3. Not All Who Wander

III. Not All Who Wander

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><p>Torston and Danae were mages.<p>

More correctly, Danae was a mage and Torston was a sage— which was something stronger than a mage and somehow more skilled. I guess this explained their clothing, what with the odd tabards and high-necked robes and hats, but the concept was hard to wrap my mind around. Mostly because mages used magic. _Magic. _Magic wasn't real.

And yet, Danae had materialized fire from her fingers with only a word. I'd _seen _the golden circles materialize in midair around her, something that shouldn't physically be possible, but they were there. I _saw _them.

_Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth_.

…To think I'd be quoting Sherlock Holmes in a situation like this. It was true though. I'd know the moment I'd woken up that something had changed, hadn't I? That things were different? When I first met Margot and Oswin, Torston and Danae, and Ren'li, hadn't I somehow _known _from first glancethat I wasn't exactly home anymore?

That just left the question of _why _and _how_; neither of which I knew the answer to and not things I'd be coming up with in the middle of the night.

I learned the mage thing from Ren'li. With everyone else asleep and just the two of us around the campfire he seemed more relaxed, and was a little easier to talk to, so I'd asked him point-blank how Danae had pulled the whole fireball-from-her-fingertips thing.

"She's a mage, of course," he'd said mildly, "Mages wield tomes. Her master is a sage, I've heard mention."

And that was that.

Since I wasn't very sleepy yet (and my back was sore from lying on the ground) I'd stayed up a little more. We talked a bit; Ren'li mostly stuck to short sentences, but it was an improvement from before and I didn't complain. I told him I was a student back home, for one, and that I didn't usually go on big hikes like this. Conversely, Ren'li had been wandering around for a few years now. He'd become a mercenary out of convenience, which was weird, and had been a myrmidon once. I didn't know what that was exactly but I guess the difference was with his sword, which he'd ominously referred to as a 'killing edge.' He'd finished sharpening it in the course of our conversation. It was back in its sheath now, propped up against his shoulder.

The other thing I pulled out of him was that he was traveling home. Danae's group was only a side-journey— safety in numbers, like he said— and he fully intended to continue on alone once we'd all reached Sage's Hamlet.

"Where's home for you?" I asked. He didn't answer right away

"…To the west. A town in Chon'sin," he said at length, and didn't offer anything more. I wasn't really in the position to push him, even though Chon'sin was _another_ place I'd never heard of, and so reluctantly let the matter drop.

We sat in a companionable silence. To my surprise I was feeling tired again. Falling asleep didn't seem quite the chore it'd been earlier, and I stifled a yawn despite myself. Ren'li totally noticed and gave me a knowing look.

"You really should sleep. You'll need it tomorrow."

"Yeah, yeah," I muttered, but eventually wiggled back under my covers. The sky above was clear, stars twinkling with light and there was an _absurd _number of stars up there. Zero light pollution was to thank, I guess. It was still ridiculously clear…

I fell asleep that way, looking up at the stars while Ren'Li keeping his silent watch in the light of the last of the fire.

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><p>Morning came too quickly. Margot woke me up with a quick shake, but when I finally rolled over, bleary eyed and stiff, everyone else was packing up their supplies. I scrambled up at that, realizing that they'd waited to wake me up last, and I complained a little to Danae<p>

"I could have helped," I said plaintively, trying to help a little by kicking dirt over the coals and rolling up my borrowed bed roll.

"You were out like a light," she shrugged, "We thought it best for you to rest given the circumstances. And to be fair, we weren't exactly being quiet." She gave me a sly look. I grumbled, but maybe she had a point. She was talking to me, at least; I'd really thrown her off with my reaction yesterday, and it still sort of showed. Or maybe Torston had said something to her? He _had_ been side-eyeing me all last night, which was vaguely uncomfortable. I hadn't known what to say to him, so I'd ignored it and pretended I hadn't seen.

There weren't any side-eyes now at least, as the mage/sage/whatever he was in question bustled around making sure everyone had their stuff together. I went to offer Margot her bedroll back.

"You sleep all right?" she asked, and I nodded. It was no sleeping bag, but it hadn't been that bad, roots and stones aside. Margot stowed the roll away and tossed something at me. Caught by surprise I fumbled around but managed not to drop it, 'it' being some kind of hard biscuit.

"There's breakfast. We're making the last push today, so we're getting an early move on." With a toothy grin, Margot was off to check on Oswin.

"Uh, thanks," I called after, and she waved. The biscuit was almost rock hard, and not particularly tasty. I worked at it with my teeth and tried to stay out of everyone's way as they finished up with their business. Ren'li was the first ready to go. Given our little conversation last night, I tried catching his eye to say good morning, but either he didn't see or he ignored me; back to strong, silent mode, I guess. Everyone else was finished soon after that and without much ado, we were off. I could still feel yesterday's hike in my legs, and I wasn't particularly looking forward to this one, but I didn't have much choice. This Sage's Hamlet place was close… and maybe it would have the answers to all the desperate questions I had in my head.

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><p>"Kirsten?"<p>

One foot in front of the other. One foot in front of— oh. Someone was talking to me. Looking up, I found that Danae had fallen in step besides me. Some hours had gone by since our start, and the sun was high in the sky again. Conversation had been light, but now we'd all been more or less quiet, especially as the path started a gradual incline upwards. It was tough holding back all the puffing and panting I wanted to do, and with Danae speaking up… ah well.

"What's up?" I asked, hoping I wasn't too red in the face. She seemed to be… fidgety. Embarrassed, almost. Tugging at the brim of her hat, Danae took a moment, apparently trying to find the right words.

"I… wanted to apologize," she said finally. She sounded sheepish. I just blinked.

"What for?"

"For the fire the other night." Oh. "I'd… frightened you, hadn't I? I didn't think about your reaction to the tome… Torston's warned me about being too… flashy, but I'd just assumed…" Wait, that's what she was apologizing for? Danae's eyes were fixed on the ground, her expression downcast. She hadn't been beating herself up over this, had she?

"Hey, no, you don't need to apologize!" I quickly assured her.

"Eh?"

"I mean, I overreacted. I've never seen, um, magic used in front of me before. It caught me off guard, sure, but you didn't actually scare me or anything." I offered her a weak smile. That last bit was a white lie; it'd freaked me the heck out, but if was making probably my first friend here feel bad, then I could swallow down that part for at least a little while. Danae looked a little happier already, and even her felted hat seemed to perk up.

"Truly?" she asked, "I-I was afraid I'd triggered some painful memory for you. Oh, I'm so relieved!" with a deep breath her shoulders dropped, letting me know just how much it'd been eating at her. "I feel a little silly now. I was afraid to bring it up again… well, I will be entirely happy to put it behind us, if you'll let me!"

"Yep. It's all in the past now," I said promptly, "Just, next time, let me know what you're going to blow something up, okay?"

The two of us burst into giggles, and just like that the air was cleared. We fell into light conversation as easily as we had the day before, falling into step near the back of our group as we talked. Ren'li was bringing up the rear, patiently keeping a pace behind us as the vanguard while up ahead, Torsten walked with Oswin. The sage had started speeding up in the last hour or so, like he'd caught his second wind. Everyone else had matched him easily, but Danae and I weren't as lucky or athletically inclined; we had to stop talking a few times just to save our breath and struggle to stay on Margot' heels. Meanwhile, the sun inched across the sky, the only way I could tell that any time was passing at all without a watch to check.

For my first night out in the wilderness, I'd been incredibly lucky to spend it with a group of people who knew how to light fires and keep watch for wild animals, but honestly, I wasn't looking forward to doing it again. I really, really hoped that we were making good progress today; I distinctly remembered Danae saying our their destination was a day's walk or so… did that mean we were close? Somewhat close? Close enough so that I wouldn't have to spend another night out here? My pajamas weren't meant for all this hiking, and a change of clothes would honestly mean the world right now. Then there was always the hope that Sage's Hamlet would give me a clue as to where in the world I had ended up…

…even though as time went on, this place was feeling less and less like _my _world.

Bad subject. I still didn't want to face that thought. Escapist I might be, apparently I was still holding out for a sign that this whole thing was some sort of… of dream. That somewhere was the proof that this whole thing was some sort of elaborately staged hidden camera thing, but... Well, magic. Everyone's clothing. The way everyone spoke. Places I'd never heard of before in my life. Feeling that somehow it was me who was out of place, not Danae or Ren'li or anyone else here.

To my immense relief it was Torston's voice that chased all the existential questions I was having away; He was waving at us from up ahead and trying to get our attention.

"Come here, you two," he called. Margot and Oswin were already with him, staring back at us stragglers plus Ren'li still bringing up the rear. Exchanging glances, Danae and I hurried forward the best we could to catch up. When we did, I found out why he wanted us. Until now, the small trail we were following had angled upwards in a hill that was nothing to laugh at. The area was pretty mountainous, with distant peaks rising up into the sky, but from where we now stood, our path crested out for a small ways before beginning a descent into a gentle valley. From our vantage point at this spot, I could easily see the valley spreading in front of me, and nestled in the middle of it… was a village.

"Is that…?" I started to say, fixed on the sight, but Danae beat me too it when she clapped her hands together.

"Is this Sage's Hamlet?" she burst out in awe, and Torston nodded. He was smiling widely, with a fondness in his eyes as he looked on. Oh yeah, based on what Danae had told me over the course of the trip, this was his home.

"'Bout time," Margot said, nonchalantly stretching out her arms, "I could use a good bath."

"I wouldn't mind one either," I said brightly, then mumbled more to myself, "And a change of clothes." And a plane ticket home.

"Then let's get a move on!" Oswin was the first to make the steps downward, and he started whistling a lively tune as he went. Margot and Torston followed, then Danae. A slightly longer break would have been nice, since my feet were killing me, but there was definitely a spring in my step that wasn't there before as I fell into step besides her. We were almost there; the destination was actually in sight.

"How exciting," Danae breathed out, "I wonder what tomes and resources they have here…? I only learned so much on my own, and master promised my studies would be much more fruitful here…"

Meanwhile Ren'li was as passive as ever. If I hadn't been looking over my shoulder periodically I wouldn't have known he was there, but I really didn't need to worry, I guess. He was there, along with the rest of us. We all were here, making our way down the now-descending slope to Sage's Hamlet.

Danae was definitely eager. Everyone else was looking forward to the stop. That just left me; ready for a nice long rest at the end of the trip, but apprehensive, wondering if I'd find a clue about where in the world I was.

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Probably it's about time to update this again whoops. Let's see if the next chapter can come a little quicker this time, haha.

Thanks again to Antex for the review! :) I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter;


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